The Vermont Democratic Party is calling on Republican gubernatorial candidate Phil Scott to take down a television spot defending his record on reproductive rights amid an ad blitz by national Democrats and Planned Parenthood portraying him as an opponent of abortion rights.
At a Monday news conference in the Statehouse, Vermont Democratic Party spokeswoman Christina Amestoy accused Scott of referring to abortion as a “wedge issue.”
“It is not OK to attack Planned Parenthood as they try to bring up questions about his record,” she said.
“This type of attacks feeds into the nationwide rhetoric we’ve heard from national Republicans, one that paints Planned Parenthood as distrustful and evil, rather than recognizing it for the valuable work it does,” Amestoy added.
The Scott campaign ad in question — called “Outraged” — features Candy Moot, a former Montpelier lobbyist who served on Planned Parenthood’s board of directors in the 1980s and has frequently volunteered for the organization.
Moot says in the spot that she is “outraged and sickened that Planned Parenthood has distorted the position Phil Scott takes today, and the position he has always taken.”
“Phil Scott is pro-choice and has always been pro-choice,” Moot adds. “That’s, I think, why I’m particularly disappointed to see these distortions and lies, because that’s what they are.”
The Planned Parenthood ad that Moot maligns — called “Restrict” — points to the support Scott has received from the Vermont Right to Life Committee throughout his political career. (Scott’s campaign has taken in $445 from Meg Barnes and Gerry Callan, who in 2014 were both on the board of Vermont Right to Life.)
Vermont Right to Life did not return calls seeking comment.
The Planned Parenthood ad also references a 2012 fact-checker by VTDigger and Seven Days that broke down Scott’s record on reproductive health, one that includes past support for parental notification and restrictions on a procedure that opponents call partial-birth abortion. (The overall claim that Scott opposed a woman’s right to choose was graded as “mostly false” in the fact check.)
Amid calls by national Republicans last winter to defund Planned Parenthood, Scott visited the organization’s Burlington health center and, according to Seven Days, said that “they do really good work for a lot of people in need.”
However, he co-sponsored a parental notification bill in the Senate and has voiced opposition to late-term abortion. A number of prominent national Democrats have voiced similar positions to Scott’s throughout their careers, including Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., Vice President Joe Biden and the two politicians on the top of the Democratic presidential ticket, Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine.
Scott has long referred to himself as a pro-choice politician, a claim Amestoy and other Democratic women at the news conference did not dispute explicitly.
They instead argued that Scott’s positions could open the door to aggressive abortion restrictions in the future.
“When you are in favor of parental notification, that’s crossing a line,” said Rep. Mary Sullivan, a Burlington Democrat.
“No longer can elected leaders take a pass on making a strong stand in full, not partial, support of women,” said Mari Cordes, a nurse who is running as a Democrat for a House seat in Addison County.
“I want the candidate who stands with women every step of the way,” said Catie Michael, a student at the University of Vermont.
Scott’s campaign coordinator, Brittney Wilson, attended the news conference Monday. Afterward she called the attacks a “distraction” from issues where Scott is more trusted, like the economy.
But despite her assertion that he is entirely pro-choice, she would not say whether Scott would veto a bill banning late-term abortions or requiring parental notification.
She instead said that while Scott may hold certain beliefs personally, he would not promote them politically.
“He still believes that it would be helpful for minors to have some more assistance in these tough times,” Wilson said. “That is not to say he is going to seek out legislation to restrict their rights.”
While the Scott campaign says it does not believe in the positions of the Vermont Right to Life Committee, Wilson said Scott would not renounce the support from the group.
“He sympathizes with everybody’s points of view,” Wilson said. “You have an organization that supports — that’s pro-life. That is not dangerous or harmful, in some respect, to other people. I think it’s — I don’t see this being a group that he would say, ‘Absolutely not, stay away.’”
Moot, the star of the ad, was also ready to defend Scott after the Democrats’ news conference.
She said the language she used in the ad was extemporaneous and not meant to be an attack on Planned Parenthood, but instead an indictment of its political tactics in the election.
“This is a very tender issue for me. I’m sad it’s come to this,” Moot said, slightly choked up. “Phil Scott is pro-choice. Phil Scott, to my knowledge, has always supported Planned Parenthood.”
Moot added that she’s been a foster mother for 37 years and does not support requirements for parental notification.
“I understand the girls who get in trouble, and I understand and feel differently about that issue than Phil,” Moot said. “I would still call him a pro-choice candidate.”
Democrat Amestoy handed Republican Wilson a letter after the news conference urging the Scott campaign to take the Moot add off the airwaves, a request Wilson rejected.
Wilson said the ad would keep airing, adding that “to refute these charges is important.”
Over the past few weeks, the political action committee run by the Planned Parenthood Action Fund has spent more than $400,000 on ads and mailers hitting Scott on reproductive rights.
A majority of the money in the Planned Parenthood PAC — roughly $350,000 — has come from the Democratic Governors Association. An additional $50,000 has come from Planned Parenthood, and smaller amounts have trickled in from individual donors.
While Scott has been slammed by these ads, the Republican Governors Association continues to pour hundreds of thousands of dollars into the state in support of him.
In the last week alone, the RGA has put $500,000 into a pro-Scott PAC called A Stronger Vermont.
The most recent RGA ad — unveiled Monday — features three Vermont women supporting Scott.
“I’ve known Phil Scott for many years,” says Montpelier resident Lindsay Kurrle in the spot. “And he’s someone who is always willing to lend a helping hand.”
